18 Mixed Signals
by Denise Felt
Summary: An alien princess causes a great deal of trouble for SHADO.


**Mixed Signals**

**(A UFO Story)**

**written by Denise Felt**

**Copyright 2003**

**ACT I**

The hull of the small spaceship tore savagely open with the blast, the tortured sound of screaming metal a fierce counterpoint to the panicked cries of those aboard. To Tiana as she ran to the lifepods, it seemed as though she had stumbled unknowingly into the fiery halls of Gehenna. Her own panic was a fist lodged hard in her throat, and she grabbed the lever to open the pod more by instinct than anything. She tumbled inside and closed the seal, hitting the release on the console as she'd been drilled to do so often. Then she curled into a tight ball and sobbed inconsolably as the tiny sphere jettisoned from the burning ship.

"Mother! Father!" her heart cried from the depths of her agony as she hurtled through the void of space. "I will avenge you!"

The shouts and screams could be heard in the main hall and only increased in volume as Sheila opened the study door and entered the room. She stood surveying the damage, her hands on her hips. "Well!"

Three guilty pairs of eyes looked up at her in mid-tussle. Then her husband smiled at her from his pinned position on the floor. "Hello, darling."

Sheila dropped her fierce pose and grinned back. "Who's winning?"

"I am!"

"I am!"

Straker took advantage of the children's distraction as they answered their mother and hooked an arm around both of their necks. "I believe I am," he said calmly.

"Not fair!" shouted Andy. "Daddy cheats! Daddy cheats!"

"Momma," Kathy explained over her brother's voice with the ease of long practice. "We had him fair and square. He's dead meat."

"Daddy's dead! Daddy's dead!" agreed Andy gleefully.

Sheila reached over and pulled him off his father and into her arms, where she tickled his ribs. "You're a bloodthirsty one, aren't you?" she asked as he giggled.

Kathy eyed her father consideringly, and he quickly sat up, dislodging her from his chest. "Don't even think about it," he said firmly. "I'm not ticklish."

His daughter looked at him doubtfully for a moment, then glanced at her mother for confirmation. Sheila winked at her, which caused her to scramble onto her father's lap and try to tickle him. He threw his wife a long-suffering look before trying to keep his quick three-year-old from finding any sensitive areas.

Once she had succeeded in tiring her young son, Sheila said, "It's time for bed, you two."

"Okay, Momma," Andy answered with a hug as he slid off her lap. She realized from his answer just how tired he was and scooped him back into her arms for another hug.

Kathy had a complaint. "But, Momma! I almost had him!"

Her mother hid a grin and answered seriously. "Another time, dear. Go on up now. Elodie's waiting for you in the nursery."

"Alright then," her daughter said ungraciously, but she dutifully got to her feet and headed out of the study after giving her father one last poke in the ribs.

"Shall Momma carry you upstairs tonight, Andy?" she asked her small son.

He shook his head and jumped down from her lap. "I like stairs!" he told her in a firm voice very reminiscent of his father's. Then he turned and promptly fell over his father's legs.

Straker lifted him high in the air and said menacingly, "What shall we do with such a child, my dear?"

Andy giggled and made his hand into a gun, which he fired loudly at his father below him. "I killed you!" he said in retaliation. "Daddy's a dead alien!"

Straker suddenly put him down, giving his wife a shocked look.

Sheila calmly patted her son's bottom and edged him toward the study door, saying quietly, "I have a feeling someone's been staying up and watching TV with Elodie when he's supposed to be asleep."

Andy grinned sleepily and rubbed his eyes. "Not me," he denied without a hope of being believed, and left the room.

"Sheila..."

She turned to her husband with a sigh. "Ed, you know _Encounters_ is her favorite show." When he continued to stare at her grimly, she added, "I'll remind her that they need to be asleep before she turns it on, okay?"

He didn't answer, but stood up and went to the window, looking out at the garden. After several minutes of silence had passed, he said quietly, "They grow up so fast."

Since she knew the way his thoughts worked, the comment didn't confuse her. She stood up and came to him, laying a comforting hand on his back. "We have a few years yet before we have to tell them."

His lips tightened. "I don't want them to know, Sheila. Why do we have to tell them at all? Life is so short. Can't we leave them their innocence as long as possible?"

She leaned her head against his back and hugged him from behind. "Part of the whole children package is that they have to grow up, Ed. They can't remain young forever. And you know we have to tell them. It's not as if they won't suspect it anyway. You don't want to do what your father did, do you?"

He considered. "No. But I don't want to hurt them either."

"I know," she said softly. "But they'll adjust. Perhaps even better than we did. Young minds are more flexible, you know."

He continued to brood out the window. "Before we know it, they'll be leaving home, going to college, getting married. How will we handle that?"

In spite of the seriousness of his question, Sheila chuckled. "Oh, Ed!"

He turned swiftly, stepping back to look searchingly at her. "Don't you care?"

"Of course, I care," she answered. "It's just that we have enough worries today without thinking about ten or twenty years from now, Ed. I'll deal with all of that when it happens. I worry about them enough every day without adding the future into it."

Straker frowned. "What worries?"

She met his eyes. "Did you notice how tired Andy was? He fell off the swing today, and I've been watching him carefully to be sure he's all right. It can be the very devil sometimes to heal quickly. I can't be sure everything healed as it should. When bruises or scrapes heal so fast, there's no way to tell, is there? And Kathy. Soletimes she just sits and stares off at nothing for long periods of time. It scares me."

It was his turn to chuckle. He pressed her to him and ran a fond hand down her hair. "Thank you, Sheila. I can always rely on you to bring me back down to earth when I get too far ahead of myself. You're right. Today's worries are enough. I think Andy's fine. He certainly didn't seem to have any trouble tonight beating up his old dad."

She grinned. "Good. And Kathy?"

He made an odd grimace over the top of her head. "Kathy's fine too. I used to do that a lot as a kid. She's just thinking hard. She's alright."

"Oh, Ed! Thank God! I was afraid she was autistic or something."

Straker laughed outright and hugged her close. "God, I love you!" he said fervently.

There was nothing so satisfying as watching the stars. As he adjusted the lens of his portable telescope to get the focus just right, he pondered why they held such a fascination for him. His counselors over the years had told him that it was an attempt to control in some small way the horrible memories he carried from his childhood. By reducing the enemy to a single spot of light, he could feel more in charge of his surroundings; less a victim. One counselor had angrily told him he was morbid to enjoy astronomy, that he was letting his fears become a fixation. Max grinned as he remembered that particular doctor. He'd been the possessor of an enormous mustache that seemed to quiver whenever he got riled about something, which was often when Max was there for a session. That particular day Max had been difficult enough that the doctor's mustache had seemed attached to electrodes, it had quivered so much. Max had barely contained his mirth until he reached the street. Now his grin twisted on a sigh. How he missed those days!

Max stared at the stars through the telescope and figured they were all wrong. What did psychiatrists know anyway? He knew his own heart, and it wasn't fear or a need to control that led him outside night after night to watch the heavens. It was something much more basic than that. Max was waiting. He was waiting for those bastards who killed his family to come back. He intended to be there when they did. Before the MIBs, before the paramilitary cleanup crews. Before them all. With his promotion at the studio, he had finally been able to purchase a special surprise for those organ-harvesting sons of a bitch. He patted his pocket absently as he scanned the night sky. Oh, yeah. A fixation? Bet your life on it!

Suddenly his eyes narrowed as a new constellation appeared within the circle of the lens. As it grew steadily brighter, his pounding heart settled. It was just a shooting star, a meteor. There'd been a short shower of them earlier. It wasn't anything. But since it was falling into the atmosphere at a steep angle, it had seemed for a moment as though it was an expanding star in the telescope's lens. He stepped back from the telescope and watched as it came down toward where he stood. It was moving fast, but it was tiny. Surely it would burn up in the atmosphere before it hit?

He cursed and dived as it streaked low overhead, a burning ball of flame that came so close he had to shut his eyes against the light. Seconds later he lay on the grass, his heart hammering in his chest, when he felt the impact as it hit the earth nearly a mile away. Before his mind could even process the information, he was up and running down the hill toward the crash site.

"What is it, Keith?" Col. Carlin asked as he came through the control room.

The lieutenant was working the dials at his console fiercely, trying to manually keep the radar focused. "A meteor shower, sir," he answered tersely. "It's playing havoc with the controls."

Peter closed the report he was reading and came over to Ford's station. He stood watching the radar screen for a time, frowning slightly. "Was there a shower predicted for tonight?"

"No, sir. But we've got one nonetheless."

They watched as the meteors filtered off the screen. Peter sighed. "Well, keep an eye on it. The Thoelians have used meteor showers in the past to cover themselves. I don't want them getting lucky on my shift."

Keith grinned up at him. He knew what his friend meant very well. If the Thoelians got through their new radar system, Straker would be furious. And not at all pleased with the one who let them get away. "I've got the radar tuned rather fine, sir. If they try anything, we should be able to catch them."

The colonel laid a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks."

He had barely turned away when the lieutenant called, "Sir?"

Peter looked back. A small blip was coursing diagonally down the radar screen. He came back to Ford's station. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure," Keith answered. "It's coming in at crash velocity; too small to be a UFO. It barely registers on our equipment. I suppose it could just be a meteor."

Carlin watched the screen carefully as the blip disappeared below the lower edge. "Do you want to tell Straker we didn't bother to check it out because it _could_ have been a meteor? Where'd it land?"

Ford grunted. "Pretty close by. North of Coventry. Grid 18 Blue."

Peter nodded. "Get a team out. And tell them to look sharp. If it's a false alarm, it'll be good drill practice for them. If it's not..."

His mouth thinned, and Keith caught a glimpse of the steel beneath his friend's quiet demeanor. "I'm on it," he answered as he radioed the mobiles.

Max pushed his way through the last of the underbrush and into the clearing. He leaned against a tree to catch his breath and surveyed the meteorite. It still glowed, the heat coming off it in waves that reached to where he was at the treeline. As the steam dispersed into the cool night air, he could see that the meteorite was completely spherical. His eyes narrowed. No meteor was completely spherical. Only something manmade could be that perfectly round. He stepped closer, his hand fisted in his pocket and his heart in his throat.

Then he heard it. _Please, help me!_

Max whirled around, unsure where the cry had come from. "Who's there? Who said that?"

_Here. In the lifepod. Please help me. The door is jammed._

He stared at the red hot ball half buried in the earth. Someone was in there! Was it...? "Who are you?" he called suspiciously.

_Tiana_, the voice answered, and he realized with a shock that he could visualize her. In his mind. As if he knew her. Hair the color of taffy, large eyes as tawny as a cat's, face as young and lovely as a dream. Max swallowed. How did he know that? How _could_ he know that?

It didn't matter. He had to help her. He didn't know if she was one of those bastards who had killed his family or something else entirely, but he couldn't leave her here for the MIBs to find. God only knew what they'd do to her. He searched for a stout branch and hauled it closer to the pod, trying to see where the door was. "Where's the damn hatch?" he muttered, and gasped a moment later as the image formed in his mind. He found the top of it just under the dirt line and positioned himself so that he could use the branch as a lever to dislodge the pod from its crater. "Hang on!" he yelled, and put his back into it.

The thick branch scorched where it touched the sphere, but slowly, then with gathering speed, the pod rolled out of the crater and slid to an abrupt stop against a large oak. Max ran toward it. "Try opening the door now!"

He skidded to a halt as the hatch opened silently. A bedraggled figure emerged from the dark smoky opening, tumbling unceremoniously onto the ground at his feet. The face that looked up at him was tear-streaked and filthy, but he knew those eyes. He held out a hand to lift her to her feet. "Come on," he urged softly. "We've got to get out of here."

**ACT II**

_Where are we going?_

Max was looking around carefully as they scrambled up the last hill to where his equipment was. "I'm taking you to my place. It's nearby, and you'll be safe there."

_Safe from what?_ Tiana asked nervously.

Max's lips thinned. "Safe from _them_," he said with a nod toward the road as he hoisted the telescope onto his back.

She looked, but saw only twin sets of lights coming down the road with a rumbling sound. _What are they?_

"MIBs," he said cryptically. And although the name meant nothing to her, his grimness did. She quickened her pace to keep up with his longlegged stride as they ran through the woods.

It seemed to take a lot longer than in actuality before they reached a parking lot flanked by a block of flats. Max led her quickly toward a ground floor window, which he proceeded to crawl through after shoving the telescope inside. He then turned and helped Tiana through before closing and locking the window. If she found it odd that he entered the building through a window instead of a door, she didn't mention it.

"Are you hungry?" he asked her, heading for the refrigerator in the corner.

Tiana had been far too distraught to be concerned about food; but now that she was somewhere safe, she was calming down enough to feel hunger pangs. _Yes_, she told him.

He found very little in his half empty refrigerator that was fit to offer someone who may have never had the opportunity to develop a taste for processed meat. He asked after some searching, "Would you like an apple?"

He brought it to her on the sofa so that she could look it over, and she gave him a tentative smile. _Thank you_.

"Anytime," he said with a shrug and a crooked grin. "We'll see about getting you something better in the morning. It'll be cool to see what kinds of food you like."

She had a slight problem figuring out how to eat the apple; but once he showed her, she went to it with a will. As she ate, he dismantled and put away the telescope in a narrow closet. Then he set about picking up discarded clothes and books, throwing the former into a small hamper near the bathroom and dumping the latter onto a built-in shelf along one wall. All the while he kept up a flow of chatter that required only the smallest of responses from her.

"Did you come from a nearby star system? Alpha Centauri or something like that? Oh, yeah. You probably don't call it that, do you? I mean, if you came from there. But it would be pretty cool if you did. Or maybe somewhere farther out? I have a star chart that's pretty neat. It's not one of those crummy civilian ones either. The guy I got it from told me... well, let's just say that it's definitely more detailed than your average star map. We could probably try to find your planet on it. Would you be able to triangulate its position, do you think?"

_I don't know_.

"Well, that's okay. I've been working on a program that will allow me to check out the night sky from any star on the map. I don't have it anywhere near finished yet, but maybe we could find a close match for you of your night sky and at least be able to tell which direction your planet is from Earth. Say, are you from a binary or a single star system? Because that will narrow our search a bit if we know that."

_Vocarra has one sun_.

"Just one? Okay. Well... Vocarra? Hey, that's a cool name. What does it mean? I mean, our planet is just called Earth, which is a really stupid name. They might as well have called it Dirt. But yours sounds interesting. What does Vocarra mean?"

_A vocarra is a small flower that grows where there has been recent lava flow. It thrives on the ash and heat until there is a field of flowers where there had been destruction._

"No kidding? That's so cool! So, they named the planet after a flower?" Max pushed clothes down into the hamper to make room for more. "Well, it's got to be better than dirt, I'll say that much. And it doesn't sound like any old wimpy flower either, not if it grows out of lava; so I guess it's all right. Did you like living there?"

_Very much_.

"So, what brings you to Earth? Surely you didn't come all this way in that tiny ship, did you? Oh, that's right. You called it a lifepod. That sounds like it's some kind of escape pod or something. Were you from a larger ship?"

_Yes._

He met her sad eyes just then and realized something. "Hey. You're not talking!" She merely gazed back at him, and he tried to think if he had ever heard her voice. "Wait a minute! You haven't spoken out loud once, have you? How are you doing that? How can I hear you? Are you a mind reader?"

_No. It's projection_.

"Projection? You mean you're projecting the thoughts into my mind?"

_Yes._

"That's so cool! And you speak English?"

_No._

"But then... how?"

_Images are a universal language_.

"Oh, that's right. And people think in images, not words." He frowned for a minute, then asked, "But how is it that you understand what I'm saying then?"

She looked down at her hands. _Projection usually happens between people who share close bonds: couples, families, and sometimes lifelong friends. It is very rare to be able to do it between strangers._

"So, how are we doing it?"

_I'm not sure._

Max came over to the couch and sat next to her. "But I'm not projecting, even if you are. If you don't know English, how is it that you know what I'm saying?"

She met his eyes for a moment, then returned her gaze to her hands. _Some people have minds that are especially..._

Max grinned. "Brilliant? Intelligent? Complex?"

Tiana shook her head._ Loud. Some people think very loudly_.

"Oh."

"Sir, I've got Major Duncan for you."

Peter came over to Lt. Ford's station and spoke into the microphone. "Major, what have you got?"

The SHADO operative's voice came over the speakers with a slight crackle. "Colonel, it's definitely not a meteor. It's a metallic sphere, it's opened, and there is instrumentation inside. There's no sign of the occupant."

Carlin sighed. "Could we be looking at more than one missing alien, Major?"

"I don't think so, sir. It's a very small craft, barely large enough for one person. We're checking the surrounding area carefully. But we're pretty close to a residential area here. We might not be able to locate the alien before he's seen."

The colonel's lips thinned in a way that reminded Keith very much of the commander. "You've got to, Major! We can't have a Thoelian running around loose killing civilians!"

"We're searching now, sir. But I'm not certain he _is_ a Thoelian."

Peter was startled. "What do you mean?"

Major Duncan ran a calloused hand through his short stock of hair. His sigh came through the speakers. "Well, sir. It's the sphere. It's not like anything Thoelian I've ever seen. And the instrumentation has different markings. I can't say for sure, but it's possible it's someone else."

"Great! Which means we have no idea what we're looking for! Get that sphere to the facility for study, Major. And find that alien!"

"Yes, sir."

_You have a waterfall in your home!_

Max grinned at her admiration. "We call it a shower. These knobs operate it. I'll lay out some clothes for you to change into once you're done. We can't have you being seen in that outfit you're wearing. The MIBs would know you for sure."

_You do not like my clothing?_

Max blushed. "I didn't mean that. I just meant that you're not dressed like an Earthling. And you'll need to be to fool them."

_Oh._

He left her to take her shower and went to finish straightening up. He didn't know how long they had before the MIBs showed up at his building to question the occupants, but he knew that there was little chance of them not coming at all. The military in England was nothing if not thorough. But he thought that once she was dressed like an average teenager, she would blend right in and not attract undue interest.

Not that she wasn't capable of attracting interest. She'd sure caught his. Max grinned as he heard the shower, his thoughts wandering as he fantasized about returning to the bathroom to join her. Suddenly, he lost his grin and blushed furiously. She'd told him his thoughts were _loud_. How humiliating if she'd heard any of those!

He grabbed the ringing phone before he was even fully awake. "Straker."

"Dad? Did I wake you?"

Straker looked at the bedside clock blearily. It read 3:24. "What is it, John?" Beside him, he felt Sheila stir.

"It's Emily. Her water just broke. We're heading to the hospital now. Do you want to meet us there?"

"I'll be right there. Drive carefully." He put down the phone, fully awake at last, and got up to dress.

"Ed, is it Emily's time?" Sheila asked sleepily from the bed.

He turned to answer her, his eyes softening as he noticed her exhaustion. "Yes. You Rigelians and your delivery times," he said drily.

She climbed out of bed and went to the vanity with a weary chuckle. "It could be a Maloran trait, you know."

"Doubtful," he replied, frowning at her. "Sheila, why don't you stay here and sleep a while longer? It's their first, so the baby probably won't get here until morning. You could join us then." He knew that Alexander had been fussy tonight, keeping her up late.

She shook her head as she put on her bra. "No. It's our first grandbaby, and I refuse to miss it. I'll be fine," she added as she saw the worry in his eyes.

His lips tightened, but he knew better than to try arguing her out of her decision. "Fine," he said tersely, which made her eyes start to twinkle.

She came up to him as he pulled on a shirt, putting her arms around his neck to kiss those grim lips. "Tell you what," she murmured sassily. "I'll let you drive."

Max really liked how well Tiana filled out his t-shirt and jeans. But he didn't say so. In fact, he tried hard not to even _think_ it. But he caught a stray smile in her eyes when she looked at him that made him squirm. "Okay," he said briskly, coming away from the window where he'd been watching the men enter the building. "You'll need just a few English words to get through the interrogation. A simple yes or no should work. They won't suspect you as a renegade alien dressed like that. They'll think it's all just routine. I'll handle most of the talking. They'll expect that anyway. So all you have to do is say yes or no to what they ask you. Got that?"

"Yes."

Max grinned. "Hey! Your voice sounds just the same as I hear it in my head! Does my voice sound the same to you?"

"No," Tiana said with a smile.

"Really? How different is it?"

She went to speak, then realized that she didn't know the words in English. _Your voice in my mind is deeper._

Max drew himself up to his full height. "Oh, yeah? Cool."

It wasn't long before there was a sharp knock on the door. Max came over to the couch where she sat and took her hands in his. "It'll be alright, Tiana. I won't let them take you away. I promise."

_Thank you, Max._

He looked a bit nervous for a moment, then swiftly leaned down and kissed her full on the lips. As another knock sounded at the door, he drew away and met her dazed eyes. He cleared his throat. "Just helping to set the scene," he muttered and went to answer the door.

"Who is it?" he demanded.

"The police, sir," came the answer. "May we speak with you for a moment, Mr. Fenig?"

Max unlocked the door, but held onto it as he opened it. ""It's past 4 am. What on Earth would you want at this hour?"

Major Duncan apologized as he came into the flat. "I'm sorry, sir. We've got a criminal on the loose in this area, and we're hoping that someone might be able to give us a lead on where to find him." He noticed Tiana on the couch and tipped his hat to her. "Ma'am. Sorry to bother you."

His companion was looking over the small flat with sharp eyes and taking notes in a notebook as they spoke. Max could tell from one look at their faces that there was no way in hell that these were real policemen. They had the look of seasoned infantry. He took a deep breath and said, "Well, we didn't see anything. We've been..." Here he gave Tiana a slumbrous look that almost had her jumping in surprise. "Busy."

Duncan's companion spoke. "Aren't you a little young, miss, to be out so late?"

Tiana glanced at Max, then said quietly, "No."

Max stiffened at the implied criticism. "She's quite old enough to be out. What are you doing, checking curfews now?"

Duncan gave his companion a look that silenced him and said, "Not at all, sir. May we have a look around?"

Max spread his arms. "Go ahead. But I can assure you that no mad criminals have gotten past us to hide in the closet."

"Just so, sir." Duncan thankfully took no special notice of the telescope in the coat closet as he searched, and Max relaxed a bit. His partner returned from checking out the bedroom, a look of disdain for its messiness on his wrinkled face. Max had hoped that they wouldn't look too closely in his overflowing hamper. Tiana's gown was hidden at the bottom.

"Well, gentlemen?"

The two men exchanged a look and Duncan said, "Thank you for letting us have a look around, sir. We'll be going now. If you do see anything, we'd appreciate it if you'd contact us. No need to be a hero and get yourself killed."

His concern touched Max. "Not a chance," he told him, keeping a hand in his pocket. "I'm no hero."

"Good, then." Duncan turned to leave, but his older partner lingered a moment.

"Are you here of your own free will, miss?" he asked Tiana worriedly.

His expression reminded her of her father all of a sudden and had her throat closing up. "Yes," she replied softly.

The major cleared his throat in the hall, and his companion hesitated, then joined him. Max closed the door behind them, but waited until their footsteps faded before coming back to the couch. He grinned suddenly in relief and threw himself down next to her. "You were great!"

Tiana blushed. _So were you._ She'd been terrified that they would see through her immediately, but Max had been right. They hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary. In fact, she wondered now why she'd been afraid of them. _They didn't seem so frightening to me._

Max grimaced. "Don't let them fool you. MIBs are sneaky fellows. I know from experience."

She felt the pain in his voice, and her small hand touched his cheek. _Tell me._ Max was quiet for a moment, then he told her how his family had died. _You too have lost those you love to an enemy._

"Your family?" he asked softly. "They're...?"

_Yes. Killed by those we considered allies. They hoped to leave no one behind to tell of their treachery. But I escaped. And I will not forget._

Max saw the determination in her delicate face and felt his heart break. "I know you won't, Tiana," he murmured. "Some day, we'll avenge both our families."

_Oh, Max!_ she said, greatly moved.

He kissed her.

Somehow, the small sterile room seemed warm and full of love. Emily couldn't stop grinning as John chattered. He was just so excited that he was nearly bouncing off walls. As Emily met his eyes for a moment, she felt her heart swell with love for him. He'll make a great father, she thought with a gusty sigh.

"Anyway," he continued his story for the relatives. "We wanted to give her a name that would have some larger meaning for us. You know, incorporating how we met and everything. But Emily simply wouldn't go for Tempus Fugit."

Straker chuckled, and Jasper said, "I think you chose a fine name. Ally Marie is lovely."

John's grin widened. "Well, I still managed to get my way a little. You see, Ally is short for Albert."

"Albert?" Jasper asked, bewildered.

Edith nudged him with her elbow. "Einstein, dear. Well, I'm sure you're tired, Emily, so we'll head on home now. We'll come back again this afternoon after picking up your parents from the airport."

"Oh, you don't have to leave, Aunt Edith," Emily said. "I'm not a bit tired. It's not every day I get the thrill of bringing a baby into the world."

Edith touched one of Ally's tiny hands gently. "Yes, I know. But you need your sleep nonetheless." She met her niece's eyes and then looked toward Sheila, who was leaning drowsily against her husband.

Emily grinned, catching on. "You're right, as always." She kissed her aunt and uncle good-bye. "See you later then."

Straker stood up and brought his wife close to the bed. Sheila hugged her and said, "You did a wonderful job, Em. Good going." She slanted a look at John across the bed. "And I suppose you get a little credit too."

"Thanks."

Straker said nothing, but laid a hand on Emily's shoulder for a moment as he looked at the baby in her arms. He then glanced at his son. "I'll tell Louie not to expect you in today."

"Thanks, Dad." Once they'd gone, he turned to his wife. "I don't think I've ever seen him speechless before."

She shook her head in amazement. "Did you see the way he looked at Ally? It made me want to cry."

"I guess we didn't do too badly, did we?"

"Oh, John! I think we made him very happy."

Her husband put his arm around her and peered down at his little girl. "Now I finally understand why they call babies a bundle of joy. My jaw is aching, but I can't stop smiling."

"Me either. She's so beautiful, isn't she?"

He peered closer for a minute, then frowned at his wife. "I don't know, Em. Don't you think she'd look better with a bushy mustache?"

Sheila was very quiet most of the way home. Her husband assumed she was finally sleeping, but was proven wrong after a while when she spoke. He was as surprised by what she said as he was that she was awake.

"I wish Mary could have been there."

He turned to look at her, too startled to think of a reply.

She sighed at his bewilderment. "Ed, she's Ally's grandmother. It feels wrong somehow that she doesn't know it, will never know it. How would you or I feel if we'd been kept in the dark about her?"

Straker was silent, thinking about it. Finally he said, "Sheila, there's just no way to inform her. What would we say? What _could _we say?"

"I know." She too had been trying to come up with a scenario that would allow Mary to take part in her granddaughter's life. "It's not possible. But it feels so wrong to leave her out. I wonder if that's why John named his daughter Ally _Marie_?"

"Possibly," her husband said with a sigh after due consideration. "If you can come up with a way to involve her without compromising security or making her think we're all insane, please tell me."

Sheila grimaced. "I'll talk to Emily about it. Maybe between us we can come up with something."

Straker gave her a soft look. "You're amazing, do you know that?"

She looked surprised. "Why?"

He just shook his head, unable to put into words the flood of emotions he was experiencing. "You just are."

Sheila tried to decipher his expression, but finally gave it up. Ed had never been an easy man to read. She gave a sleepy chuckle. "Thanks."

**ACT III**

"Well?"

Col. Carlin squared his shoulders. "He hasn't been found yet, sir."

Straker frowned at the map on his desk. "It's been hours, Colonel. He could be anywhere by now. And doing untold damage to civilians in the process. Have there been any reports of sightings?"

"Just of the sphere itself, sir. Several people saw it crash land. The official report is that it was a meteor. We've searched all the dwellings in a five mile radius of the crash site. No one seems to have seen anyone unusual."

"Hmmm. Someone must have! A spacesuited alien waving a gun around isn't likely to escape attention. Extend the search area."

"We already have, sir," Peter said, biting back a sigh. "But it's possible that the alien isn't Thoelian."

"_What?_"

"We'll know more when we get the report from Dr. McCloud at the facility, but Major Duncan said that the sphere didn't look Thoelian to him."

The commander looked grim. "Colonel Carlin, if we're not dealing with a Thoelian, then we may not find the alien at all. You know as well as I do how long certain races have been coming and going on this planet! And they fit in just like the natives! Duncan could have even spoken to him and not been aware of it. How long did McCloud say it would be before he gave his report?"

Peter checked his watch. "At least another five hours, sir."

Straker's lips thinned. "Tell him I want it in one. Not all the details, Colonel. Just the important information."

"Yes, sir." The colonel went to leave the office, but his commander forestalled him.

"Oh, and Peter? Tell him we'll need photos of the instrumentation. Maybe Serya in the Library can place his race well enough for us to know if he's hostile."

"Right."

Max took Tiana to the botanical gardens, having decided that the regular touristy historical stuff wouldn't interest her as much as a look at Earth's flora and fauna. He felt he'd made the right choice when he saw how excited she was ar they wandered around.

_Look at these flowers!_ She held a large bloom up for his inspection, grinning at him in a way that made him want to hug her. Max dutifully leaned forward to smell the flower, but couldn't remember its name. Tiana didn't seem to mind not knowing what they were all called, and he was glad. Botany had never been one of his strong areas in science.

"Is there a flower here like the vocarra?" he asked her.

Her smile widened as she nodded. _That one over there_, she said and pointed to a small patch of violets hiding under a tree.

Max laughed. "You're kidding, right?"

Tiana shook her head and tried her small amount of English. "No."

He followed her to the tree and reached down to touch the petals of a violet. "Tiana, we call this flower a violet. It's practically a weed. Nothing like these showy flowers that we've been looking at for the past hour."

She turned her back on the flowers she'd been admiring until now and delicately touched one of the violets. _The vocarra is very much like this flower. No one on my planet would call it a weed. What a terrible designation! Who decides these things?_

Max grimaced. "I don't know. But we had a poet once who said that the names we call things aren't as important as the thing itself. He said that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

Tiana's smile returned. _He sounds like a very wise man._

"So, Ed? How's the new grandpa?"

Straker glared over the stack of reports on his desktop at Alec, who was grinning at him from the doorway. He gave a grunt and went back to work.

Undaunted, Freeman went to the drink dispenser in the corner and poured himself a drink. He slid comfortably into the chair in front of Straker's desk and waited him out. Eventually, the commander closed the report and set it aside. As he picked up the next one, his eyes met those of his friend. He sighed and laid the report back on the pile. "Listen, Alec. Serya found the alien race in the database Emily set up for us. But there's little more there than just the name of their planet: Vocarra. The Solarians don't know them, Emily says they're friendlies; but I don't like it that whoever it is has disappeared into thin air. The whole scenario smells."

Alec asked, "You've spoken to Emily then?"

Straker ran a hand over his eyes. "Yes. I called her at the hospital an hour ago. Her parents were in the room with her, so she couldn't say much. But she seemed confident that there'd be no trouble from them. And she assures me that they don't have the technology to simply disappear."

The colonel was startled. "You mean, there are races that can do that?"

The commander's eyes held a fugitive twinkle, but his lips were still grim when he said, "Come on, Alec! We're the smallest kid in this game. Some of these races have forgotten more than we'll ever hope to know."

"Hell!"

Straker gave a small grunt of agreement with that assessment. His restless fingers fiddled with the edge of a report as he thought about it. Finally he said, "Damn it, Alec! We have to find that alien! I shudder to think what kind of damage he can do, and every hour that passes only makes it worse."

Freeman sat forward. "But, Ed. If he's a friendly, surely we don't need to worry about him?"

"He shouldn't have been able to slip by our teams! The mere fact that he did suggests that he doesn't want us to know what he's up to. And that's all the more reason for us to know!"

"What do you think he wants?"

The commander sat back in his chair with a weary sigh. "I don't know."

There was silence in the room for a time, then Straker spoke quietly. "Do you have any idea what we're truly up against, Alec? Think back to the ways the Thoelians have tried to take over this planet just in the last few years! We're lucky to have even lasted this long."

Alec frowned. "But surely this alien isn't working with them?"

"Prove it," Straker demanded harshly, sitting forward. "Emily may say he's friendly, but his actions haven't been. They've been sly and underhanded since his arrival. Why hide in a meteor shower in the first place if he means no harm? Why hide from the teams after he landed? I don't know for sure if he's in league with the Thoelians or not, Alec. And frankly, that's not the scenario that worries me the most. But we can't just write him off either. We have to know why he's here!"

"I agree." Col. Freeman pondered a moment, then asked, "What scenario are you afraid we're playing out, Ed?"

Straker gave a heavy sigh. "Have you ever considered what would happen if we came up against another race that wanted Earth? Someone more powerful than the Thoelians? More aggressive? More inventive?"

Alec's face whitened in shock. "You think...?"

"It's a possibility. It's been a possibility all along. But recent events have made me worry more and more about it. Hell, Alec! We've been sitting on a global time bomb for the past twenty years and didn't even have the intelligence to see it! What else has been tried that didn't work? What else will be tried that we'll have no idea about until it's too late?"

"But I thought we found a way to stop the global shifting. You were excited about Fred's report."

"Yes. Yes. And relieved as well. The Rigelian science team will arrive this week to help us implement the project. But what about next time, Alec? And the next? The Thoelians have outfoxed us too often in the past few years. Luck! Luck alone has kept us from going under. What do we do when that luck runs out? Or when a bigger bully enters the game?"

Whatever answer Alec might have given was lost when the phone rang. Straker answered it. "Yes, Ford?"

"Sir, Bradley wishes to speak with you."

"Send him in."

"Yes, sir."

When Straker hung up the phone, Alec noticed that his weariness had gone. He looked alert and ready for anything. "What is it, Ed?"

The commander grinned at him as the man entered the office. "Maybe our luck hasn't run out just yet, Alec."

Sheila entered the SHADO office upon the older man's departure. She found her husband smiling ruefully at his best friend and said, "What's up? Was Joe Bradley able to shed any light on our missing alien?" She knew that the commander had ordered the teams to report anything unusual from their inquiries, no matter how minor.

Straker looked over at her with a frown. "What are you doing here?"

She raised a brow. "I work here."

His lips compressed. "I believe I told you to take the day off."

Sheila ignored his displeasure and sat leisurely in the chair by the desk. "Come on, Ed! I'm hardly going to sleep all day. Besides, I want to help you find your alien."

Alec chuckled, diffusing the tension in the room. "Ed was hoping that Bradley would give us a lead, but it was no-go."

Sheila tilted her head to the side as she met her husband's eyes. "Surely he reported something?"

The commander ran a hand through his hair in disgust. "He wanted us to be moral judges."

She looked blank. "Oh?"

Freeman finished his bourbon and set down his glass with a grin. "A couple of teenage kids were necking in one of the flats he checked. Joe thinks the girl was too young, and he wants Straker to do something about it."

Sheila laughed. "You're kidding!"

Straker sighed, looking down at the map. "I wish he was."

His wife got up and came around the desk to peer over his shoulder. "Is this the crash site?"

"Yes."

After a moment, she frowned. "Ed? Which buildings did Joe search?"

He pointed them out for her. "Why, Sheila?"

She looked worriedly at him. "It's just that... Ed, Max lives in this block of flats."

He was briefly concerned, then shrugged. "I'm sure it's nothing, Sheila. It was the middle of the night. Max needs his sleep as well as anyone else."

She ignored his small rebuke, but paced the office before saying, "Yes, but Ed. Max didn't come into work today."

"What?"

She had his attention now. "He called in first thing this morning. He has the flu. Buck told me. I was thinking about going to see if he was all right."

Alec interrupted the silence that followed this remark. "So, he's sick. Surely that's no cause for alarm?"

Straker sat back in his chair, his blue eyes on his wife. "You don't understand, Alec. Max wouldn't miss work if he was dying."

"And you think he might have an alien in his flat because he called in sick? It doesn't necessarily follow. He might have a girlfriend. Boys his age do, you know."

Sheila shook her head. "Not all of them. You see, Alec. Max is a geek."

"Sheila!"

At her husband's pained expression, she smiled slightly. "Sorry, dear. Max is highly intelligent, Alec. He understands the inner workings of computers, programs, and film studios. But there is one area where he has very little knowledge."

Straker said, "What Sheila is trying to say is that he doesn't date, Alec."

Freeman met the twinkling eyes of his commander's wife and bit his lip to hide a grin. "I see."

"Besides," Straker continued, "finding Max in the middle of this concerns me. You met him, Alec. He's exactly the kind of person to get involved in a UFO incident. He goes looking for trouble."

The colonel nodded slowly. "I remember. You said once that you were worried about what trouble he'd cause us until he was old enough to recruit."

"Yes." Straker looked pensive. "I'd better find out if Bradley has left yet." He picked up the phone and spoke to the guard at the security desk. "Is Bradley gone? Good. Put him on." He looked at Sheila and said quietly, "He's just signing out now."

She nodded and came back to the desk. Her husband spoke into the phone. "This is Straker. Do you remember the name of the tenant in that flat you mentioned? Hmmm. Thank you, Joe. Yes, that's all."

When he put down the phone, Sheila interpreted his expression without difficulty. "It was Max, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"But, Ed!" Alec said. "There's no proof that the girl with him is an alien. I mean, come on! Boys have to grow up sooner or later."

Straker compressed his lips. "I'd sooner believe he had an alien in that flat than a girlfriend, Alec. I know Max."

After a moment, Freeman asked, "How will you handle it? Will he panic if the troops are sent in?"

"Without a doubt. No, we need a subtler approach."

Sheila nodded. "Something nonthreatening. Listen, Ed. I was planning on taking some chicken soup over to him anyway. Why don't I go ahead? That way I can let you know if we've got a true situation or not. He won't suspect me of any ulterior motive."

But her husband shook his head. "I don't like it, Sheila. We don't know what we're dealing with in this alien. There could be trouble."

She frowned. "I thought we had the data on the alien. Serya said..."

"I'm not quite willing to accept the database's ruling on that," Straker interrupted. "There are just too many unanswered questions."

Sheila said reasonably, "We won't get them answered by sitting here worrying about it, Ed. It's a low risk operation. Max knows me and trusts me."

He had another objection. "You're not that skilled at detecting alien races, Sheila. There's no guarantee you'll be able to tell that she's anything but normal."

She sighed. "I won't have to rely on any internal radar, Ed. All I need do is watch Max. If she's an alien, he'll tell me with his body language alone."

Straker was silent, obviously trying to come up with another reason not to send her. Alec leaned a hip on the desk and said casually, "I don't blame you for worrying, Ed. It sounds pretty dangerous to me." The commander looked up at him suspiciously, and he continued with a wink at Sheila. "I mean, the boy might not _like_ chicken soup!"

Sheila grinned. And even Straker's lips twitched. But all he said was, "Shut up, Alec."

After Sheila left the office, Alec poured himself another drink. "You know, Ed," he said meditatively as he sat in the chair by the desk. "You're getting worse about her."

Straker looked at him inquiringly.

His friend sighed into his bourbon. "I always thought that once you got used to her being back at SHADO, you'd relax and let her do her job. But you've gotten worse about it rather than better."

"That's not true," Straker refuted. "I let her go to Moonbase, didn't I?"

"Sure. With you glued to her side! I just don't get it. Surely she's proven that she can handle her position by now?"

The commander leaned back in his chair, struggling to find the words to explain how he felt. He finally said, "I lost her once, Alec. It devastated me. I barely knew her compared with our relationship today, but it nearly destroyed me anyway. It's been five years since I met her again, and it scares me sometimes how much she has come to mean to me. I lay awake and watch her sleeping, and I think, _All of her smiles, all of her laughter, are just a touch away_. Frankly, I'm amazed that I have her at all. And I wonder how long I'll get to keep her this time. And if I'll be able to survive losing her now that we're so close."

Alec shook his head. "I don't know why you're worried about that, Ed. Sheila's more than shown she's a survivor. She survived the Thoelians, didn't she? Hell, according to what John told us when he first got here, Paul wouldn't even have done very well if she hadn't been there during the Great Shoe Incident. Instead, they both came through it without any trouble. What makes you so certain you'll lose her?"

Straker shrugged, but his expression became briefly haunted. "Experience."

Alec realized suddenly that he was talking to a man who had lost his mother at a young age and seen firsthand how that loss had affected his father. "Listen, Ed. Statistics show that most women outlive their husbands. You and I could be decades in our graves while our wives are still running around getting into trouble. Then won't you feel stupid for wasting all this time worrying?"

His friend's lips quirked ruefully. "Maybe." After a long moment, he asked, "Don't you ever worry about losing Dee?"

"No," Freeman said. "Not like that. Not in death. I worry that she'll look at me someday like my mother used to do, with that indifferent stare. As though she didn't know who I was and didn't care, but just stay out of her way."

Straker said reassuringly, "I doubt very much if Delores _can_ look like that, Alec. She's far too lively."

"Yeah." Alec downed his bourbon. "I love her little face. Especially her pout."

"You love her pout," his friend said slowly, as though finding it hard to accept.

"Oh, yeah! Don't you love Sheila's?"

"When Sheila pouts— which is rarely, thank God— I start sweating."

Alec grunted. "Shades of your first marriage there, you know."

Straker shrugged, but didn't deny it.

Freeman considered for a moment. "Dee has such a cute pout, Ed. And it does something to me; I don't know. I just want to pick her up and kiss her when she pouts."

The commander chuckled. "You're besotted."

"Too true. Too true," Alec lamented with a shake of his head. After a while, he stirred himself from his musings and asked, "So, Ed. How _does_ it feel to be a grandpa?"

Max and Tiana were at his computer when there was a knock on the door. He frowned and went to answer it. He wasn't expecting anyone. "Who is it?"

"Sheila."

He was surprised enough to open the door. "What's the matter?"

She grinned at him. "Buck said you had the flu. I was worried about you. See? I brought you some soup. Shall I warm it up for you? How are you feeling?"

"Oh. I'm alright. I guess. Listen, thanks for the soup, but I'll just have it later when I'm hungry. I wouldn't want to give you my flu."

"Nonsense," she said and walked past him into the flat. Sheila smiled at the girl across the room and said, "Hi!"

Tiana backed up, pressing a hand to her mouth. Max had barely closed the door before her voice was screaming into his mind. _Max! She's a Rigelian! She's here to kill me, Max!_

Max looked at Sheila in bewilderment, then over to where Tiana stood. "No, Tiana. She's a friend. Her husband is my boss. She's okay. Really."

_No! You do not understand. Her people were our allies. But they betrayed us and murdered my parents, Max! She's here to finish their mission. We must kill her!_

"No, wait! Tiana!" Max shouted, reaching out to her. But she ignored him, her gaze fixed on Sheila, who suddenly gave a sharp cry and crumpled to the floor. Max went to where Mrs. Straker lay in a heap near the couch and felt for a pulse. Dread was a knot in his stomach, but it eased somewhat when he felt a slight heartbeat. "Tiana," he whispered. "What did you do to her?"

_Max! _she cried, trembling and frightened. _She would have killed me!_

"But what did you _do_?"

_It is called nerve induction. I merely stimulated all the nerve endings in her brain at once._

Max winced. "Geez, Tiana! You could have killed her doing something like that!"

_But, Max. We must kill her! She is my enemy_.

He sighed and laid a shaky hand on Sheila's head. "We can't, Tiana. You have to be wrong about this. I know her. She's not anyone's enemy. Trust me."

Tiana turned away to hide her tears. _You do not believe me!_

Max said quickly, "Of course I do, Tiana! It's just that..."

_Show me then. Show me that you believe me._

He met her gaze and thought furiously.

Sheila's first awareness was of pain. Pain in every part of her body. Her heart plummeted. She knew where she was; she was in the cell on Tuatara. Ming had beaten her into unconsciousness again for fighting him. She whimpered softly. _Ed!_

After a few moments, she became aware of carpet beneath her cheek. And her hands were tied uncomfortably behind her back. _What...?_ She laid very still, trying to remember. Her mind felt foggy, and it was difficult to concentrate on anything. But one thing was certain: she wasn't in the cell. Not if there was carpet. Eventually she could hear voices. No, it was just one voice. But it seemed to be arguing with someone out of earshot. She tried to make sense of the words.

"We can't keep her here. Sooner or later, we'll have to let her go." A pause. "No! We can't do that! You don't understand. Her husband is my boss! There's no way we can kill her!" A pause. "I know I said I'd help you, Tiana, but I just don't believe that she's an alien. I've seen aliens, and she's nothing like them." A pause. "No, I didn't mean you. You're different. Don't you think I know that?" A longer pause. "Well, I don't know what a Rigelian is, but I can assure you that Sheila isn't one. She had nothing to do with the Rigelians who destroyed your spaceship and murdered your parents."

Sheila was piecing enough of the words together to dimly begin understanding them. She had an objection to make, however, and muttered, "Rigel isn't at war with anyone."

"Oh! You're awake." Max came over to where she lay on the floor by the couch and said, "I'm really sorry about this, Sheila. You see, Tiana thinks... wait a minute! You said..." He gave a gasp. "Sheila, _are_ you a Rigelian?"

She met his eyes and deemed it imprudent to answer. Instead, she asked, "Max? Why am I tied up? What's going on?"

He ran a distracted hand through his unruly hair. "I don't know! Tiana says you're an enemy of hers. Are you?"

Sheila moved her head painfully and met the wary eyes of the girl by the window. "No," she said carefully. "Have we ever met before?"

_Max!_ Tiana said urgently. _She's trying to confuse you. Don't listen to her!_

"Just a minute, Tiana," Max said, flustered. "Sheila, I'm sorry, but I can't let you go until I have this all sorted out. I'm really sorry."

"Will you at least untie me?" she asked.

He winced as Tiana's voice screamed into his mind again. "Stop it, Tiana!" he said firmly. "Trust me. Okay?" He stared at Tiana for several moments, willing her to calm down. Then he turned back to Sheila with a sigh. "I can't do that, Sheila. Tiana's afraid of you."

Sheila looked at him in some irony. "_She's_ afraid of _me_?"

He flushed, but answered seriously. "Yes. And I can't let you go until I prove to her that you're no enemy."

She thought quickly, realizing from everything he had said that she wouldn't be able to talk her way out of this one. Time to call in the troops, she decided. "Max, I don't mind staying to help you sort things out, but Ed will be expecting me to call him and let him know how you're doing. I promised him I'd call him once I saw you. He was worried about you too, Max."

"No. No phone calls."

"Max, he'll come looking for me if I don't call him and check in."

He stared at her for a long moment, obviously trying to think of a way to keep Straker from coming to his flat. Sheila kept her expression as earnest and unthreatening as she could. Finally, he sighed and reached for the phone. "Okay. But no funny business. I mean it."

The call wasn't long, but by the time Straker put down the phone, his face was white and grim. Alec met his eyes and asked worriedly, "Ed? Is something wrong? Is the boy in trouble?"

The commander replied tersely, "Trouble? Yes, Alec. But I think it's Sheila who's in trouble, not Max."

"What do you mean? What did she say?"

Straker ran a hand over his face. "Nothing, really. Just that she had taken Max the soup, and he liked it, just as you had said he would."

Alec frowned. "But I said he might _not_ like it."

"Exactly."

"And based on that, you think she's in trouble?" Freeman's skepticism was evident in his tone.

Straker sighed. "I know my wife. I know her voice and its many nuances. We've gone through three births together, Alec, so I know when she's trying to sound fine even though she's in pain."

The colonel grimaced. "And she's in pain now?"

Straker gave a sharp nod and picked up the phone. "Major Duncan? I need your team in ten minutes. I'll meet you at the block of flats and explain how I want you to proceed. Don't do anything until I arrive, do you understand?"

Alec watched him hang up and get his gun, checking it to make sure it held a clip. He wanted to offer to go in the commander's stead, not sure if his friend could handle this situation with his usual detachment. But he bit his tongue, knowing that there was no way Straker would trust someone else to rescue his wife. Even his best friend. "She'll be all right, Ed."

The commander gave another short nod, but not as though he really believed it.

His friend sighed. "She'll know you're on the way."

Straker's lips tightened to hold in a tremor. "Yes. Now if I can only reach her in time." And without another word, he left the office.

Tiana was in tears, and Max held her closely, trying to soothe her as well as himself. He needed to be able to clear his mind enough to think his way out of this mess. But his thoughts were chaotic, and his concern for Tiana did not make the situation any easier to handle. But, hell! Mrs. Straker was a friend, not an enemy! There was no way he was going to kill her without some real proof of her duplicity. And he needed a quiet space of time in order to formulate a way to get Sheila to tell him the truth about the Rigelians. Hell! If she even _knew_ it.

The sudden knock on the door to his flat had him jerking in surprise. "Who is it?" he called.

"It's Straker, Max. I need to talk to you."

Max shot an accusatory look at Sheila. "Damn it! You told him!"

She shook her head. "You heard the call, Max. I told him not to worry about me."

"Then why is he here?" he hissed as he crossed to the door.

"I have no idea."

Another knock sounded.

Max shouted, "I'm sick, Mr. Straker. Contagious. I'm not seeing anyone today."

"Max!" Straker's voice was stern. "I know you have my wife in there. Let me in, and we'll discuss this. You know I can't leave until I've seen her."

The young man laid his head against the doorjamb. Jesus! What was he to do?

_Max! Don't let him in!_ Tiana's words in his mind only made him more upset.

"Damn it, Tiana!" he said fiercely. "He's my boss!" And he opened the door.

Straker stepped in slowly, keeping his eyes on Max instead of on the gun the boy aimed at him. "What's going on, Max?" he asked quietly. He saw from the corner of his eye that his wife was on the floor near the couch and bit back his relief that she was alive.

Max motioned for Straker to close the door, and the commander thought it prudent to do so. The young man looked nervous as hell; not a good way to be when holding a gun. Again he asked, "Max, what's going on here?"

Before Max could try to explain, Tiana's frightened voice filled his mind. _Max! He's Maloran! Don't trust him!_

Max glanced toward the window where Tiana stood, then quickly back to Straker. But he spoke to her. "What's Maloran? I thought your enemy was the Rigelians."

_Yes, but the Malorans are their allies. He's with her, Max. Don't you see? They're here to finish the job._

"Come off it, Tiana!" Max was exasperated. "Everybody can't be aliens!"

_It's the truth! _she insisted. _Ask him! Ask him, Max!_

He felt like an idiot; but nonetheless, he looked at the man who had done so much for him and said, "Are you a Maloran, Mr. Straker?"

The commander gave Tiana a long look before turning back to Max. "What I am, Max, is a friend," he said quietly. "Is this what our friendship means to you, that you'd hurt my wife and hold a gun on me?"

Max swallowed nervously. This whole situation was out of control. These were his friends, for God's sake! They weren't aliens! How could they be? He'd have known. Surely, he would have been able to tell before now? "Mr. Straker, I'm really sorry about this," he began, starting to lower the gun.

But Tiana's voice vibrated through his mind. _Max! Don't listen to him! He's trying to trick you! You told me, Max. You told me that we would avenge our families. Didn't you mean it?_

"Of course, I meant it, Tiana." Max looked from her tear-stained face to Straker's bland one and tightened his grip on the gun. "I don't know what's going on, Mr. Straker, but Tiana says you're an enemy of hers, and I believe her."

"I don't even know her, Max," the commander stated reasonably. "How can I be an enemy?"

"Because you're friends with the Rigelians. And they assassinated her family."

Straker's eyes narrowed. "Rigel isn't at war with anyone."

Max nearly fumbled the gun in his surprise. "Then you know! Then you are a part of this!" he accused.

"Not in the way you think, Max. Let my wife go, and we'll talk about it. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"Tell me now."

The commander shook his head. "Not until my wife is safe."

_No, Max!_ Tiana screamed in his mind, terrified that he would let her go. _He's trying to gain the advantage! Don't trust him!_

"Damn it, Tiana! Let me think!" Max said, giving her a sharp look. When he turned back to Straker, the commander had his own gun out and was pointing it at him. "_Shit!_"

"Let my wife go, Max," Straker said quietly. "Then we'll talk."

Max shook his head, trying not to stare down the barrel of that wicked-looking gun. "No way. She stays until I know what's going on."

Straker knew that Rigel had been at peace for millennia; knew from General Shaw that they were considered a strong enough presence in the sector that no one wanted to go to war with them. But he also knew that things could have changed without any Rigelian on Earth being aware of it. After all, it was a big galaxy. If somehow the Rigelians were responsible for this girl's family being killed, he needed to know the facts. But there was no way he'd let his wife pay for any atrocities committed by someone lightyears away. "We could stand here all day, Max. Is that what you want? Let her go. I promise you that I'll listen to what you have to say."

He sounded so reasonable that Max wanted to do as he said. "Put down your gun."

The commander gave him a grim smile. "When you do, Max, and not before."

Max held that gaze, seeing the strength behind those blue blue eyes. Something about the expression in them made him want to lay down his gun and cry on Straker's shoulder. Something in those eyes made it impossible not to trust this man. "Okay, Mr. Straker..."

_Noooo! _Tiana turned to where Sheila lay on the floor, watching the scene carefully. _She must die!_ And she focused on projecting pain into Sheila's mind.

Sheila gave a sharp cry that was cut off midway as she slumped to the floor, unconscious.

"Tiana!" Max tightened his grip on his gun when Straker made a move toward his wife. "Don't move! Don't move or I'll shoot!"

Straker stopped, but leveled his gun at Max, looking grimmer than Max would have believed possible. "Make her stop. Now!"

Max swallowed. "Tiana, stop it! We can settle this. Come on!"

_No, Max!_ He could hear her frightened tears in his mind. _You were going to let them go. They would kill me, Max. I thought you understood._

"I do understand. But you can't kill her, Tiana!"

_I will kill her._

Straker saw how intently she was focused on Sheila and knew that he had to act quickly. "Make her stop, Max. I won't ask you again."

"Tiana!" Max pleaded. "Stop it! Mr. Straker, put down your gun. She's just afraid. If you put down your gun, maybe she'll stop."

"Perhaps you're right, Max," Straker said, starting to lower his gun.

Max sighed deeply and lowered his gun as well. Before he realized what was happening, Straker had lifted his gun and let off a single shot. Max thought at first that he'd been hit, then turned at the sound of Tiana hitting the floor. "Tiana!" He ran to her, gathering her up in his arms and trying to staunch the blood that flowed from her shoulder.

The front door flew open and a team of gun-wielding men poured into the flat.

Straker didn't give them a second glance, but went quickly to where his wife lay and felt for a pulse. He had to take a few deep breaths before his system settled enough to find it. It was thin and erratic, and her color was bad. "Stretcher!" he shouted, and Major Duncan came to his side and waved for a stretcher.

"Right here, sir," he told the commander and touched his arm as he prepared to follow them from the flat. "Sir, what about the other one?"

Straker looked blankly at him for a moment, then turned to where his men were pulling Max away from the bleeding Tiana and cuffing him. The commander's lips thinned ominously, but he nonetheless said, "If you insist." So Duncan motioned for a stretcher to be brought for the girl.

Max was still in shock as they dragged him out into the hallway. His eyes found Straker's as the commander stood by his wife's stretcher, and he said, "You shot her! My God, you _shot_ her!"

Straker turned from him in disgust and accompanied the stretcher to the ambulance.

**ACT IV**

When Sheila opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was her husband. He held her hand and smiled softly at her. Her own lips involuntarily curved upward in response. "Hi."

Straker asked, "How do you feel?"

"I'm not sure. Take the elephant off my head, and I'll let you know."

The commander shared a glance with Dr. Jackson that had him going to get his syringe. Then he looked back at his wife. "We'll see what we can do about that. Okay?"

She nodded, then said, "Ed. The girl."

"What about her, Sheila?" he asked, rubbing his thumb across her hand in a soothing way.

Her mind still felt groggy, but she tried to put the right words together. "I want to talk to her."

"Not a chance." His tone as well as his expression was inflexible.

She moved her head painfully on the pillow. "Ed. Please. She didn't understand. She thought I wanted to hurt her."

Straker met the doctor's eyes and nodded. Jackson injected Sheila's arm with a sedative. The commander looked back at his wife and smoothed the worry off her brow. "It will be all right, Sheila."

"But I can't let her think I'm an enemy, Ed."

"I know. I know," he soothed, watching her eyelids fight to stay open. "We'll talk about it later. Okay? You need to rest now."

She turned her hand to grip his. "Wait! She'll be upset. I want to help."

He gave her a soft smile. "Sheila, you'll handle things much better after you rest. You're in too much pain now for diplomacy."

She couldn't deny his logic. "All right. Later then." And she let her eyes close.

_Not if I can help it_, he thought savagely, but said nothing out loud. He waited until her breathing evened out, then shot Jackson a look. "What did you give her?"

The doctor said, "A sedative. You're correct, Commander. She has suffered a great deal of mental and physical trauma and will feel better after she's rested."

Straker's look didn't lighten. "Sheila is notoriously resistant to sedatives, Doctor. I've never seen her go out so quickly."

The doctor permitted himself a tight smile. "I gave her a quadruple dose."

The commander lifted a brow at him, but Jackson was careful to continue meeting his eyes. "I see," Straker said finally. "You told me there was minimal brain damage."

"Yes. She was lucky." Jackson paused a moment to look at the woman on the hospital bed. "Or she simply heals very quickly."

Straker frowned at his tone. "She's Rigelian. Of course, she heals quickly."

"Not that quickly."

The commander's lips tightened, but he said nothing. Instead, for several minutes he merely watched his wife sleep. Then he asked, "Will the extra sedative affect her healing?"

"No."

He sighed. "Right." He tucked the hand he held under the hospital blanket and stood up. "How long will she sleep, Doctor?"

"I would say five, perhaps six, hours."

Straker watched his wife sleep, calculating carefully. Then he said, "That doesn't give me a lot of time."

Jackson hid a grin. He knew what the commander meant. "She's your wife, Commander."

Straker nodded, his eyes softening for a moment as they rested on her face. "Yes, she is." _As long as I get to keep her_, he added silently. He kissed her forehead, then headed out of the Medical Centre.

Jackson's voice halted him at the door. "Commander, are you interested in the condition of our other patient?"

Straker's expression cooled to ice. "I assume she's alive."

Dr. Jackson blinked. "Yes. It was a clean shot. No bones broken. No major organs touched."

"Good," Straker said dismissively and left the room.

"Where is she? What have you done to her?"

Straker stood in the doorway of the interrogation room and eyed Max coldly. He walked toward the small tble and chairs near the side wall and spoke, his words a cool contrast to the heat of the young man's. "We need to talk, Max. Please have a seat."

Max waved a dismissive hand. "I mean it, Mr. Straker. Where is she? I want to see her."

The commander's eyes were liked chipped ice. "I said _sit_."

Max sat.

Straker's expression lightened so slightly that the younger man missed it. The commander sat down on one of the chairs and stretched his legs out in front of him. He never took his eyes off Max. When the boy finally looked up and met his gaze, he said, "She's fine. Resting."

"I want to see her."

That arrogant brow was raised. "I don't think so, Max."

Max's fists clenched. "Why not? What have you done to her? Will you dissect her?"

Straker was startled. "Why would we do that?"

The younger man shrugged. "I've seen videos of those alien autopsies you guys do."

"And you believed them?"

Max swallowed at the commander's sarcasm. "What am I supposed to think?" he countered.

Commander Straker sighed. "Where do you think you are, Max?"

"MIB headquarters."

The commander had heard of the term. It was usually only used by a certain fanatical part of the general population. As a member of C.A.A.R., Max qualified as a fanatic, he supposed. "Our name is SHADO; Supreme Headquarters Alien Defense Organisation."

Max blinked. "For real?"

Straker gave a ghost of a smile. "For real."

"And you're in charge?" Max asked suspiciously.

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"You're an alien!" Max sputtered, surprised he had to explain himself.

That brow lifted again. "Are all aliens enemies, Max?"

Max could not meet those hard eyes for long. He couldn't say _yes_, not after meeting Tiana. Then he realized that Straker might see her as an enemy. He swallowed nervously, then said, "No."

Straker relaxed. "Then you shouldn't have any trouble accepting that I'm in charge here." When the young man didn't meet his eyes, he sighed and added, "I'm Maloran, Max, not a Thoelian like those who killed your family."

Max's head came up at that. "How did you— who told you— ? I mean, they were Thoelian?"

"Yes. They're the reason SHADO was built."

"Then where were you when my family died?"

The commander shook his head slightly. "I'm sorry, Max. It took a number of years to get the organisation together. Projects this big take time."

Max met Straker's eyes and saw that the older man wished otherwise; that SHADO had been there for Max's family. And he relaxed for the first time since meeting Tiana. "What will happen to Tiana?" he asked after a moment.

"I'm not sure. A lot will depend on her."

"She'll be scared. Especially if she sees you."

"Perhaps. Do you have a better idea, Max?"

The young man sat forward in his chair. "Sure. Let me talk to her. She trusts me." The idea of working with the people who were actively trying to stop those killers excited him.

"But can _we_ trust you, Max?"

"Of course!" Max said, surprised that there was any doubt.

Straker merely lifted a brow at him, and the younger man realized where the problem lay. _Tiana_. "Of course, you can trust me, Mr. Straker," he said in a subdued tone.

There was silence for a long moment, then Straker spoke. "I notice that you haven't asked about Sheila."

Max swallowed hard, but made himself meet those stern blue eyes. "I... is she...? How is she?" he asked, afraid of the answer.

"She'll be fine."

Max was so relieved that he felt weak. "I thought... I was afraid... I'm glad she's okay."

"No thanks to you, Max," the commander said.

"I know. But I tried. I didn't want her hurt! I didn't really think that Tiana would actually try to kill her. She was just scared, Mr. Straker. She's not a killer."

"It's surprising what a person is capable of doing when they're frightened, Max. Some even turn on their friends."

Max flushed. "I'm sorry, sir."

"How sorry?"

Startled, Max looked at him questioningly.

Straker said, "Are you willing to earn our trust once more, Max? Prove that our friendship means anything to you?"

"Yes."

"I'm glad to hear it," the commander said as he got to his feet. "The only people I have who can speak Vocarran are ones that I won't risk anywhere near your friend. I may need an interpreter, Max. Can I trust you enough to be honest with me about her answers?"

"Yes, sir," Max answered, glad to be able to help fix the mess he'd made of things.

"Good. I'll let you know when she's awake."

Later, Max's eyes seemed enormous behind his glasses as the commander walked him through the control room. A casual reference from one of the operatives to someone on a screen made him gasp. _Moon? Base?_ What a place this was! And all this time he'd worked on the lots, having not the slightest idea that it was anything more than a film studio. What a mind fry!

He didn't lose his grin until they passed the guards at the door of the Medical Centre and entered. Seeing Tiana, bandaged and pale lying on the hospital bed, brought everything back to him in a rush.

_Max!_ She held out her arms, and he hugged her close, then loosened his grip as he felt her bandage under his hand. She didn't seem to have minded, but was staring up at him as if... as if he was a savior rather than the one who got her into this mess in the first place.

"Tiana," he said with a sigh, knowing that it wasn't going to be easy to explain things to her.

Suddenly she stiffened as she glanced over his shoulder. _Max! What is _he_ doing here?_

Max stood once more between the girl who adored him and the man he admired more than anyone on Earth. He took a deep breath as he met those lovely tawny eyes, and said, "Tiana. I was wrong about him. I was wrong about everything. The MIBs aren't an enemy. They're here to help us."

She searched his face. _But, Max...! He shot me!_

Max turned as Straker approached the bed and met those blue eyes for a moment. Then he looked back at Tiana. "I know he did, Tiana. But he was just trying to protect his wife. He wasn't the threat, nor was Sheila. It was us, Tiana. _We _were the threat. We were the bad guys."

_And you believe him?_

"Max," Straker said quietly. The young man met his eyes, imploring his help. The commander said, "Please ask her to explain why she came to Earth."

Max nodded, relieved to have the conversation taken out of his hands. He repeated Straker's words to the girl on the bed.

When she only glared at Commander Straker in return, Max added, "Tiana, he can help us find out what happened to your family. He's the boss here."

_Then he is in the best position to make sure I'm silenced, Max. I told you he was an ally of the Rigelians._

Max ran a hand through his hair, and Straker said, "What is it, Max?"

"Tiana is still afraid that you mean to kill her, Mr. Straker. She says you're an ally with the Rigelians."

"Tell her she's right. I am."

"But...!"

"Then tell her that I am an ally with several of the races that come to Earth. Perhaps hers as well. If she can convince me to be."

Tiana had been watching their faces closely, so she did not seem very surprised when Max told her what Straker had said. After a moment she answered, _My parents were the rulers of Vocarra for over thirty years. Then my father's brother got a group of malcontents together and overthrew the palace. We barely escaped with our lives. We made it as far as Rigel, where we were given sanctuary until such a time when we could return to Vocarra. But my father did not wish to live in exile. He wanted to go somewhere fresh to begin again. He was very hurt by his brother's betrayal, you see. He decided to bring us to Earth._

Max did not immediately relay the message, but stared at her open-mouthed.

_What's wrong, Max?_

"Tiana," he said, trying to speak past the heart lodged in his throat, "you're a princess?"

_Yes._

"Max?" Straker was obviously awaiting her answer.

The young man swallowed hard as he remembered his role as translator. He repeated her words for the commander, but inside he felt as if the bottom had fallen out of his world. What would a princess want with a commoner like him?

Straker considered her words for some time in silence. Max was also silent, but his thoughts must have been loud, because after a minute or so, Tiana's small hand crept into his and squeezed it reassuringly. He drew comfort from her smile.

Finally the commander asked, "What happened to your family?"

After a moment, Max translated. "Their ship was within sight of Earth when they were approached by another Rigelian ship. When they wouldn't answer her father's hail, he was suspicious enough to have Tiana leave the bridge. The ship was hit almost immediately afterward. She made it to a lifepod before the ship blew up, but the blast forced Tiana's lifepod into Earth's gravity, and she crash-landed here. That's when I found her."

Straker realized that the debris from the ship must have caused the unexpected meteor shower that covered Tiana's arrival. He sighed. She wasn't the only one who had jumped to conclusions in this situation. He said, "You say that the Rigelians killed your family. Why would they do it here rather than while you were on Rigel? It makes no sense. What could they hope to gain by waiting until now?"

She almost didn't wait for Max's translation. She could read Straker's bewilderment easily, and it mirrored her own. _I don't know. But I saw the ship on the viewscreen. It was a Rigelian ship._

Once Max relayed her response to him, Straker said, "It seems to me that we've been mixing our signals from the start of this whole incident. We assumed you were here for nefarious reasons because of the way you arrived and immediately disappeared, while you were told that we would dissect you if we caught you. I don't think we should assume anything else before we have the whole story." He lifted a hand as Max instinctively protested, and the younger man fell silent. Straker continued, "We have a delegation from Rigel that is on its way to Earth right now. They'll be here in a few days. I'd like to have you present your story to them at that time. Perhaps they can shed some light on this dilemma for us. Or at least explain to us why Rigel would take such a course of action."

Max told Tiana, but he was clearly troubled by Straker's answer. However, Tiana had been watching the commander's face, so she only nodded and asked, _Will you turn me over to them?_

The commander shook his head, meeting her eyes squarely in a way that was even more reassuring than his words. "I will be there with you when you speak to them. You are here on Earth without the protection of those whose duty it was to keep you safe. Therefore, we will protect you until such time that you no longer need our protection. And we will also see to it that the truth is brought out about your parents' deaths, no matter who it involves or implicates. Will you accept our protection, Tiana?"

She held back tears as Max translated for her. She had wronged this man, had tried to kill his wife out of panic, but here he was--- still willing to help her. Because it was the right thing to do. She, a member of the royal family, heir to many thrones and kingdoms, had not half the kingly attributes this man possessed. He reminded her strongly of the stories she had heard of her grandfather, who had been a stern leader and a much beloved king. She swallowed her tears as befitted her station, and answered him directly with her small supply of English. "Yes."

He gave her his sweetest smile as he kissed her hand, sealing their agreement. Then he turned to Max. "You may stay with her until the doctor throws you out. In the meantime, I'll have quarters made up for you. Just ask the guard at the door to show you the way."

"Thanks, Mr. Straker."

The commander nodded and headed for the door. As it slid open, Max suddenly said, "Mr. Straker?"

Straker looked over his shoulder at the two young people eying him so earnestly. "Yes?"

"Tiana says she's sorry about your wife."

The commander nodded once more, unable to think of anything diplomatic to say. It still hurt to remember seeing her under attack like that. He stepped out of the room, letting the door close behind him. Speaking about his wife reminded him that he had to come up with a way to keep her busy over the next few days. At least busy enough to keep her away from the princess. Agreement or not, he wasn't going to take any more chances where his wife was concerned.

"So, what are you going to do with him?"

Straker looked up and realized that Alec had entered the office and poured himself a drink without him being aware of his presence. He pressed fingers to the bridge of his nose before answering. "For now, he's a guest of HQ. I've had a room made up for him."

Alec lifted a brow. "And will he stay put and out of trouble?"

The commander grimaced. "He will if he knows what's good for him." He sat back in his chair and visibly tried to relax. "Actually, I think he really wants to help, now that he knows we don't intend to dissect his new friend."

Freeman was startled. "Dissect? Are you kidding?"

Straker shook his head.

"Good God, Ed! Why would he think a thing like that?"

"Come on, Alec," his friend replied with a mischievous smile. "Surely you've watched an alien autopsy video before?"

Alec choked on his drink and sputtered for a few moments before answering. "Damn it, Ed!" he said, wiping the front of his jacket. "Where do you hear about such crazy stuff?"

Straker chuckled. "It's those fringe groups I hang around, Alec. You wouldn't believe the things that go on in one of their meetings."

Freeman grunted, refusing to take the bait. He knew that look in Straker's eye, and he wasn't in the mood to play games. "So, what about the girl? What happens to her?"

The commander sighed. "We'll keep a guard on her around the clock and hope like hell that the Rigelian delegation can clear up this mess for us."

"And if they can't?"

But Straker only shrugged, refusing to speculate on that possibility.

Alec poured himself a second glass. "How is Max going to feel about his girlfriend being surrounded by guards all the time? It's bound to put a crimp in his libido."

He had hoped to get a rise out of his prudish friend, and he didn't fail him. Straker's lips thinned, and he said tersely, "That's hardly my problem. He'll survive it, I'm sure."

"Maybe," Alec agreed doubtfully. "But what about when he complains about it? What are we supposed to say, Ed?"

Straker eyed his friend grimly. "You'll tell him that she is under SHADO's protection, and we intend to make sure that the attempted genocide does not succeed while she is in our care."

Col. Freeman became abruptly serious. "You think there might be an attempt on her while she's here?"

"Too many wrong assumptions have been made about that girl already. I refuse to assume anything else, Alec. Even that she's safe at HQ. And I have far too many unanswered questions left to take any chances. If Max disagrees with that, tell him to talk to me."

Alec met those hard eyes and grimaced into his drink. "Right."

**ACT V**

"There's only one thing to do then," Emily said as she paced the room.

Before Sheila could comment, John spoke from the doorway. "What are you two plotting?"

Emily whirled around, her hand on her heart. "Oh! You startled me!" She came over to kiss her husband. "What are you doing home so early?"

Actually, once his father had explained about SHADO's current guest, he'd wanted to rush home and make sure his wife wouldn't be going anywhere near HQ for awhile. Dr. Jackson had concluded that Rigelians were the only race at SHADO that was susceptible to the girl's psychic attacks. But he knew better than to try to explain that to her. "I missed you," he said softly and drew her close for a second kiss.

He instantly released her at a soft cry from upstairs. As he headed up to investigate what could have upset his lovely new daughter so, Emily turned to Sheila with a grin. "Smitten!" she lamented.

"Besotted," Sheila agreed solemnly. "Don't you love it?"

Emily laughed. "Yes. I do. I didn't think anything could be better than being with him, Sheila. We've been so happy, even when we're fighting." She paused for a moment. "Does that sound silly?"

"Not at all. I understand completely," her friend and mother-in-law replied, also having a husband who could irritate and beguile at the same time.

"Well, then. I just had no idea that once we had kids that it would get even better. In fact, I was a little worried that we'd drift apart; me taking care of the little ones and him going anywhere he could to find some quiet. But it's not like that at all."

"No," Sheila agreed with a small smile. "Instead, he insists on being a very active part of the baby's life. It's so sweet. And so unexpected that you can't help but love him more."

"Yeah." Emily's grin faded after a while, and she asked, "Is that normal?"

"You mean, for a man to want to be involved in his children's lives? I wouldn't call it normal, exactly. It just depends on the man."

Emily sighed gustily. "Then we're lucky."

Sheila raised a brow at her. "You're just realizing this?"

Her friend chuckled. "No. But it's nice to be reminded."

Sheila agreed, but soon sobered. John's arrival had interrupted their plans. "What will we do?"

Emily said, "You talk to your designer friend, and I'll see about getting the coast clear."

"Okay." Sheila turned and watched John coming downstairs with Ally in his arms. "Call me when you're ready." She got up, hugged her daughter-in-law, then stopped by the father and child on her way to the door. She kissed Ally's cheek, then John's, before leaving.

John looked bemused. "What was that all about?"

His wife grinned. "She thinks you're swell."

He quirked a brow at her. "Oh, yeah? What have you been saying, Emily?"

"Nothing that isn't true," she replied saucily and kissed him on the mouth.

He held both his women in his arms for several minutes, grinning like a fool. Eventually, however, he remembered the conspiratorial way they'd been talking when he came in the house. He looked closely at his demure wife and said suspiciously, "What are you two up to, Em?"

"Nothing you need to worry about," she evaded.

"Emily..."

"Really," she assured him. When he only stared at her in disbelief, she sighed. "We want to help Tiana."

She got no further. "No way!" he said. "Damn it, Em! That girl's dangerous. Hasn't Sheila been hurt enough? Why would she drag you into this?"

"Will you listen to me?" she asked, trying to break through his alarm.

He closed his eyes for a moment, then told her, "I'll try."

She led him to the couch and sat next to him and their daughter. "I know you're worried about me, John. And I also know that Ed's worried about Sheila. After all, Tiana tried to kill her. But you have to understand. She was just trying to protect herself from a possible enemy. She's all alone, her parents have been killed, and she's stranded on an unknown world. What would you have done in her shoes?"

"I don't know. Probably the same. But the thing is, Emily, that I don't want her to try out her tricks on you."

"John, she's not panicked now. And she's being protected. She knows we're on her side."

"Then why do you need to see her?" he asked reasonably.

"Because she's going to be facing the science team once they get here. And Sheila tells me that all she has to wear is the outfit Max let her borrow or a SHADO uniform. Apparently her dress is too torn and filthy to wear any more."

He eyed her sternly. "This is about _clothes?_ Come on, Emily!"

"Clothes are a very serious subject for women, John. Remember how long it took me to find the perfect wedding dress?"

He shifted in his seat. What he remembered was that she had driven him crazy trying to decide on one. He'd never figured out what the problem was. They all looked the same to him. White. But this was no time to debate that issue. "And you're going to tell me that all you and Sheila want to do is help her pick out a dress to wear?"

She sighed. She loved him; she really did. But sometimes she'd sooner wrestle a monkey than try to explain the obvious to him. "Look, John. This is a very important meeting to her. She'll be facing those who call themselves her allies, but who may in fact be her enemies. She needs to feel confident. She needs to feel powerful. The last thing she needs is to go in there looking like a refuge from a rock concert."

"Okay," he conceded, because he could— almost— see her point. "But that doesn't explain why it has to be you two. You're more vulnerable to her than anyone else. And if she thinks Rigelians are her enemies, what makes you think she'd behave herself with you?"

"Because I can speak her language, John. Reassure her. And Sheila's friend is the one who'll make the dress for her. So we have to be the ones to go. Besides, if she panics, she can only attack one of us at a time. The other one will be able to stop her before anyone's hurt." She hoped.

He held her gaze for several long moments before conceding defeat. "Fine." But he added, "Dad won't like it."

Emily hid a grimace in a shrug. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

His eyes widened as he realized that Sheila intended to see the girl without her husband's knowledge, and his courage failed him. "I don't want to know. If you get yourself killed, Ally and I will do just fine without you."

Emily grinned in relief. "I love you too," she whispered and kissed his sulky mouth.

Ally gurgled.

"Shaw's here," Paul announced as he entered the office.

Straker looked up from the pile of reports on his desk. "Now?"

Col. Foster nodded. "On his way through the control room as we speak."

"Damn."

Paul hid a grin, crossed his arms, and leaned against the wall, preparing to enjoy the fireworks.

General Shaw entered the HQ office and shook Straker's hand across the desktop. "Commander Straker. I talked with your father the other day. He says it's a shame you don't visit him often. What do you think about taking a vacation?"

"So I can visit my father?" Straker asked smoothly.

"Of course," the older man said as Straker waved him to a chair.

"Effective immediately?"

"No, no," the general chuckled. "I won't make you leave before we've got the lithosphere shored up. I know how much you've been fretting until that's done. But afterward, I'm sure you'll be ready for a break. What do you think?"

Straker relaxed slightly. "That sounds fine, General." He turned to where Foster stood. "You may go, Paul."

"Sure," the colonel answered, visibly disgusted by their display of comraderie. Where was the yelling? The name calling? The rank-pulling that Henderson had so reveled in? This general was a pushover. He left to complain to Alec about it.

Once he was gone, Straker closed the office door and said, "What did you really wish to talk to me about, General?"

Shaw gave a quick grin, then sobered. "Well, I was a bit dismayed that I learned about the young Vocarran from my staff rather than from you. But since I was sure you thought you had a good reason to keep me in the dark, I thought I'd come and ask you about it in person."

Straker sat back in his chair and surveyed the general blandly. "I appreciate that, sir. But I would have thought the reason for my reticence was obvious. You're Rigelian, and therefore vulnerable to an attack from the girl. I didn't want you put in jeopardy."

General Shaw smiled genially. "I thought that might be it." He steepled his fingers in his lap and admired the effect it made. "Tell me, out of curiosity, does your wife let you get away with that kind of highhandedness at home?"

Straker grimaced slightly. "I knew you'd want to see her, General, in the hopes of reassuring her that Rigel isn't after her family. But she's been frightened enough, without knowing that my boss is also a Rigelian. It's bad enough that my wife is one."

The general pondered a moment, then asked, "Does she trust you, Commander?"

"For now. I'd like it to stay that way."

Shaw nodded. "And you don't want my interference."

"I don't want you hurt, sir."

Mild brown eyes met earnest blue ones for a long moment, then Shaw sighed. Straker was much too good an actor for him to be able to tell if his concern was real or feigned. Either way, it seemed that he'd been checkmated by an expert. "And the delegation?"

Straker seemed to sigh. "They'll have to deal with her accusations and SHADO's, General. We won't cover up such a heinous crime for anyone, even an ally."

Shaw inclined his head. "I understand. You may be surprised to know that I agree with you, Commander. Whatever happened needs to be dealt with by my people, carefully and honestly. May I accompany you when you confront the science team? On behalf of SHADO, of course."

The commander hesitated, but so briefly that it was impossible for Shaw to take offense. "We'd be honored, sir."

In any event, General Shaw was there when the science team from Rigel arrived. Whether he timed it deliberately or not, he was just leaving the main studio building when the long sleek car drove up to the entrance. His eyes retained their customary mild expression, but his smile was very close to ornery as he returned with the six men to Straker's outer office and introduced them to the secretary.

"Good afternoon," Grace Waterman said with her usual imperturbability, as if a roomful of dark-suited men from outer space was not in the least unusual. She depressed the button on the console.

Straker's voice came over the intercom. "Yes, Grace?"

"Mr. Straker, Mr. Shaw is here with some friends to see you."

There was a noticeable pause, then Straker said drily, "Send them in."

Tiana and Max looked up from the couch when Straker entered her quarters. Max had been so quiet since he'd found out that she was royalty that she'd needed to reassure him more than once of his importance to her. Max agreed that while she was here, she definitely needed his help, but he kept to himself his fear of losing her once the crisis was resolved. In the long term, princesses and director's assistants had no future together.

"Am I interrupting?" the commander asked blandly.

Max flushed, withdrawing his hands from Tiana's and saying with an assumption of calm, "No, sir. We were just preparing for the big confrontation with the Rigelians."

Straker nodded. "Good. They've just arrived. I wanted to let you know that we've doubled your guard and will be keeping them under guard, as well." He waited while Max told her, then added, "I've scheduled the hearing for 09:00 tomorrow. Did you have any questions, Tiana?"

Even before Max relayed his words, Tiana was relaxing. Straker's unusual blue eyes were so expressive that she instinctively responded to his concern. She said, _Do they know that I'm here?_

"No. I've told them nothing. If they're innocent, there shouldn't be any trouble between now and tomorrow when we confront them. If they're not..." Here he paused and drew a deep breath before continuing. "If they're not," he reiterated, his voice going hard, "we'll know how to deal with the situation."

_Thank you_.

A formal breakfast was served to SHADO's esteemed guests the next morning in Conference Room F. When most of the dishes had been removed and Straker judged the team to be relaxed and well-fed, he signaled for the waiting staff to leave and poured himself another cup of coffee. The guards in the doorway caught the quick glance he shot them and unobtrusively locked the door.

"Dr. Gregor," the commander said, drawing the attention of the science team's leader away from the discussion of the similarities between Earth's and Rigel's dining customs.

"Yes, Commander," the dark-haired man replied, trying to get used to the sight of a Maloran, alive and well, on this primitive planet. None of the reports he had read adequately prepared him for the actual face-to-face reality. It was astonishing. And even more amazing was that this Maloran was Andrell's own son!

"SHADO is honored to have your team among us," Straker answered smoothly. "Your assistance with our lithosphere is greatly appreciated."

Dr. Gregor spread his hands. "We are honored to assist you, Commander Straker. Earth is very important in the history of Rigel, and we will do all that we can to ensure your continuation as a species."

Straker nodded. He was relying heavily on the Rigelian love for their ancient queen. He knew from observing Shaw that it ran very deep among his people. "Perhaps you were unaware that SHADO is also entertaining another guest from your region of space."

Dr. Gregor looked at the colleague to his left, who nodded and said, "Yes. It would seem that Earth is allied with Solaria too, as well as with the only surviving Maloran colony."

The Rigelian leader thanked him for his information, then addressed Straker. "I hope that we may be allowed to visit New Malora while we are here, Commander. We wish to have the opportunity to present the king with gifts from our queen."

"We'll see what can be arranged," Straker replied. "However, I was not referring to Solarians or Malorans when I spoke of our other guest."

Dr. Gregor suddenly seemed to become aware of a change in atmosphere in the room, a weightiness that had not been present before. The commander was looking a little grim, as was his second-in-command seated beside him and the general on his other side. He asked cautiously, "Who might that be, Commander Straker?"

Straker leaned forward, his piercing blue eyes unwavering. "She's a Vocarran, Dr. Gregor."

The scientist swallowed. It had sounded like an accusation. "A Vocarran? Why would they be so far out? They are not much of a space-exploring community. They have only traveled among their own star system, except for occasional diplomatic trips to Rigel. What would bring them to Earth?" He turned once more to his colleague on the left, who was also looking bewildered.

"It makes no sense, Gregor," he assured his superior. "Perhaps we had better hear the story from the commander." The Rigelian team turned to look at Straker.

One thing Straker knew about scientists was that they made poor actors. And the entire Rigelian team was looking honestly confused about the presence of a Vocarran on Earth. Too confused to be faked. Great. Obviously there were not going to be any easy answers to this crisis. He signaled one of the guards at the door, who immediately left the room. Then he turned back to the delegation. "Perhaps it would be better, gentlemen, to hear the story from the Vocarran herself."

"Yes, please," readily answered Dr. Gregor, who had the look of a man confronted with an intriguing puzzle.

Straker shot a swift glance at Shaw, who was looking somewhat relieved. He too had realized that the science team knew nothing of Tiana and her family. Had the girl been lying after all? The commander remembered all too clearly her fear and panic. Could it have been feigned?

His thoughts took an abrupt turn as she entered the room with Max, escorted by the guard. Tiana looked regal in a heavily embroidered gown layered over with embroidered silver chiffon. The crown on her head was of an unusual design of woven silver strands, among which shone several gleaming crystals. But it was the dress that made Straker suddenly suppress a frown. He knew who had designed that dress. Damn it. How could he not recognize the workmanship of the man who had designed his wife's wedding dress, as well as most of her wardrobe? Someone had obviously not been kept busy enough to stay out of trouble, as he had hoped. What was a man to do with a wife like that?

He met Tiana's eyes for a moment and sighed. She no longer seemed like a scared young girl, but wore her noble station with all the confidence at her command. She looked ready to face down a firing squad, if necessary. Obviously, his wife had thought of the one detail that he'd forgotten, the one thing guaranteed to boost the confidence level of any woman: the right dress for the occasion. He'd have to find a way to thank her, he supposed. _After_ he yelled at her.

The entire room stood, and the Rigelian leader gave a deep bow, trying unsuccessfully to hide his surprise at meeting Vocarran royalty on Earth. "Greetings, esteemed one. We are honored to be presented to you. Do you wish us to convey a message to our queen for you?"

He had spoken in Vocarran, but she answered him in English for the benefit of the commander. Max had been coaching her. "Yes. Ask her why my family was assassinated."

This announcement had an immediate effect. Gregor blanched visibly, while the rest of the team gaped in shock. The leading scientist was so shaken that he sat back down and ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Assassinated?" he whispered in horror. "The king? The queen?" Everyone knew that the royal family had been secreted off Vocarra during the coup. But he had assumed that they were living in the palace on Rigel. He stared at her aghast, then seemed to realize that he was sitting in the presence of royalty. He stood up quickly. "Who did this?" he managed to ask.

"You did."

Chaos erupted from the table as each member of the science team started asking questions at once, not just to Tiana, but to each other and the SHADO officers as well. Straker allowed it for a few minutes, then said in a stern voice, "That's enough." As the room quieted, all eyes seemed to turn toward him. He stepped out from the table and came to rest a hand on Tiana's arm. He could feel her nervousness, but none of it showed in her face. He gave her a reassuring smile, then looked at Dr. Gregor.

"Tiana informs us that it was a Rigelian ship that fired on her family's vessel. She barely escaped with her life. We will want to examine your ship to see if it was the one used in the attack. I'm sure you can understand our concern, gentlemen."

Dr. Gregor said immediately, "Yes. Of course, Commander. But I assure you that we never fired on her family's ship." One of the scientists leaned close to his leader and whispered something into his ear. Gregor looked beseechingly at the commander and added, "Commander Straker, our ship _did_ fire on a Rigelian ship not two days ago."

Straker tightened his grip on Tiana's arm, but kept his eyes on Gregor. She understood that he did not want her to react to the statement and tried to relax. She was very glad of his support, though. They were actually admitting their deed!

"Princess Tiana, won't you sit down?" Straker asked calmly, steering her toward a chair that one of the guards pulled forward for her. She didn't need Max's translation to understand what he wanted. In truth, it felt good to be able to sit down. Her knees were quite shaky.

Straker then returned to his seat, motioning everyone else to follow suit. Only Max remained standing behind Tiana's chair. The commander turned back to Dr. Gregor and said, "Perhaps you will explain why you fired on one of your own ships, Doctor?"

The scientist swallowed and tried to maintain his calm. There was something so ominous about the commander's dry voice that he felt at a distinct disadvantage. "It was an older model not often used these days," he said as calmly as he could. "That made us a little suspicious, since most models that old don't venture far from our sector. But when they refused to answer our hails and continued coming into weapons range, we were certain that something was wrong. We fired a warning shot, which was answered with their weapons. After an exchange of weapons' fire, we were able to disable the ship and take the surviving crew into custody. My first officer and a few members of our crew are taking the ship back to Rigel now for the investigation."

"Then it's not available to be examined," Straker said, displeased.

"Well, no. But we had no idea that it had been engaged in any other incident, Commander, or we would have done an interrogation at the time."

"This all sounds very plausible, Dr. Gregor," said the commander, throwing a disgusted look at the general. "But what you are really telling us is that you've removed any evidence that we could verify, leaving us with only your word that events occurred as you say. And you still haven't explained why one of your own ships would fire on you."

The scientist spread his hands. "They weren't Rigelians, Commander. They were pirates. We have not yet found out how they commandeered one of our ships, but the formal investigation should have no trouble learning the details. We are nothing if not thorough in our methods."

Straker was silent while he considered, and the room held its breath, awaiting his response. He finally spoke. "These pirates. What did they hope to gain by destroying Rigelian ships? Surely it would have been more in their interests to disable the ships and take possession of their cargo?"

Dr. Gregor frowned. "We too wondered at this. But the Breen are a volatile race, Commander, and we cannot assume that their reasons will make much sense to us."

"The Breen?"

The scientist nodded. "Yes. The crew was all Breen. Their commanding officer along with several of the crew were killed when we returned fire on the ship, but a few survived and will stand trial on Rigel for their crimes."

Straker shared a look with Alec, then turned back to Gregor. "This Breen commander. Did he have a name?"

Gregor seemed surprised at the question. "Yes, Commander. His name was Partos."

**EPILOGUE**

"Tiana, I'm sorry."

The princess shook her head, reading his expression easily enough that she didn't need Max's translation. She looked at Max. He in turn translated for the commander. "Tiana says that she doesn't hold you to blame, Mr. Straker. And she wants to thank you for helping her find out the truth behind her parents' deaths. She says that it's a relief to know that there was no deliberate plot to kill them, that they were just victims of time displacement."

Straker's brow rose. "Time displacement?"

Max shrugged, saying finally, "I think it's rather like being at the wrong place at the wrong time."

"I see. However, I do feel responsible for the incident, Max. Partos was no doubt trying to force SHADO into war with Rigel by running a blockade on any approaching ships. Since he was careful to keep just out of range of our radar, we wouldn't have known what was occurring until we were already at war. We owe Tiana a debt that we cannot hope to repay."

Tiana gave him her hand to kiss, wishing there was a way she could tell him just how much he had helped her. But she doubted if he would understand what it had meant to her to have his support during that confrontation. She said, _I know of no debt. Please consider Vocarra an ally to Earth. One day, when I am returned to the throne, we will hold a celebration in your honor. Perhaps you will dignify the occasion by attending._

Straker acknowledged her invitation with a noncommittal nod, but his smile was gentle.

Max followed him out of her quarters. "Mr. Straker?"

"What is it, Max?" the commander asked, seeing the younger man's unease.

"What happens now, sir? I mean, I know too much for you to just let me go back to being a director's assistant. Will I have my memory erased or something? Will I be exterminated?"

Straker shook his head. "You have a very harsh view of us, Max. Do you really think I'd order your death as easily as I would order a fresh pot of coffee?"

The young man shrugged, feeling miserable. Tiana would be returning with the Rigelian science team to testify at the trial. He was certain that they would want her to remain there at the palace for her own safety. What did anything matter when he knew he'd never see her again? "I don't know."

The commander saw more than Max would have found comfortable. "You know, Max. We want to recruit you for SHADO. I'm sure that we could find a spot for you at HQ or one of our auxiliary bases. However, if you think you're up to it, there's a much more important job available. Granted, it's dangerous. And it will require your constant attention."

"What's that, Mr. Straker?"

"Well, Max. Tiana needs a bodyguard. I'm personally satisfied that the Rigelians pose no threat to her life. But she may continue to have qualms from time to time. It's reasonable to expect that after all she's been through. I want to assign someone from SHADO to watch over her while she's on Rigel, but it's such a long way away that I'm not sure who I should ask to do it."

Max was grinning with relief. "Me, sir. Ask me."

Straker laid a hand on his shoulder as they headed down the corridor. "I was hoping you'd say that, Max."


End file.
